Department for Transport

West Coast Railway Line: Rolling Stock

Lord Snape: To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they will take toensure that Avanti West Coast Trains Ltd stop using diesel trains on lines which have been fully electrified.

Baroness Vere of Norbiton: Avanti West Coast is replacing its current diesel powered trains with a new electric and electric/diesel hybrid bimodal fleet which will start operating in 2022/23. With the ability to switch seamlessly between electric and diesel power, the new fleet will ensure that there is no longer diesel operation on electrified lines in support of a drive to a cleaner environment.

Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office

Israel: Palestinians

The Marquess of Lothian: To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the announcement on 19 November of their decision to proscribe Hamas as a terrorist organisation, what diplomatic efforts (1) to further the Middle East Peace Process, and (2) to bring about peace between the Israelis and Palestinians, they intend to initiate.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon: The UK remains committed to making progress towards a two-state solution. The Foreign Secretary regularly discusses this issue with international counterparts. Peace will only come through negotiations between the parties, but international action has a role in facilitating progress. We firmly believe a just and lasting resolution that ends the occupation and delivers peace for both Israelis and Palestinians is long overdue. That is why we support steps to increase understanding and dialogue between the parties that can help create the conditions for meaningful negotiations.

Syria: Politics and Government

The Marquess of Lothian: To ask Her Majesty's Government what is their strategy to ensure that the security situation in the north east of Syria, including Raqqa, remains stable.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon: In north east Syria we assess that the ceasefire is broadly holding. We regularly engage with actors on the ground and urge all parties to continue adherence to ceasefire agreements and international law. We also remain committed to the Global Coalition Against Daesh and at the most recent ministerial meeting in Rome on 28 June 2021, the UK announced £2.6 million of new funding to help prevent violent extremism in the north east, in support of the Coalition's Stabilisation Pledge. Further, we continue to support the delivery of aid through all modalities, and to date, we have committed over £3.7 billion in response to the Syria Crisis, our largest ever humanitarian response.

Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe

Baroness Northover: To ask Her Majesty's Government which ministers have visited Iran to discuss the case of Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe with the government of that country since July 2019; and (1) who was the minister, and (2) when was the visit, in each case.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon: The Foreign Secretary and Ministers take every opportunity to discuss a wide range of issues with Iran, including through our Ambassador in Tehran and in phone calls. Officials routinely visit Tehran for discussions with Iranian counterparts. Such discussions include nuclear non-compliance, regional stability and security, the release of British dual nationals and Iranian human rights violations. The Foreign Secretary discussed Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe's case with Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian on 8 November. The Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister, Bagheri Kani visited the FCDO on 11 November to meet senior government officials and Minister Cleverly, who raised all our cases with his Iranian counterpart.

Iran: Detainees

Baroness Northover: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made as to whether (1) Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe, and (2) Anoosheh Ashoori, is a hostage of the government of Iran; and whether there are any other British nationals in a similar position.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon: We do not accept our nationals being used as diplomatic leverage and have repeatedly made this clear to Iran. We remain committed to securing the immediate and permanent release of unfairly detained British nationals in Iran, including Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe and Anoosheh Ashoori.

Iran: Hostage Taking

Baroness Northover: To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to counter the practice of hostage-taking by the government of Iran; and what assessment they have made of the value of the Declaration Against Arbitrary Detention in State-to-State Relations, launched in February, in taking such steps.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon: We do not accept any of our dual nationals being used as diplomatic leverage. We remain committed to securing the immediate and permanent release of unfairly detained British nationals in Iran, including Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe and Anoosheh Ashoori. The Foreign Secretary discussed their cases with Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian on 8 November. The Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister, Bagheri Kani visited the FCDO on 11 November to meet senior government officials and Minister Cleverly, who raised all our cases with his Iranian counterpart.As part of the Canadian Initiative Against Arbitrary Detention, we are committed to enhancing international cooperation to stop any State from arbitrarily detaining foreign nationals for coercive purposes. We are working with our G7 partners to enhance mechanisms to uphold international law, tackle human rights abuses and stand up for our shared values.

Olympic Games: China

The Marquess of Lothian: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they have held any discussions about a potential boycott of the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics (1) within government, (2) with the government of the United States of America, or (3) with the International Olympic Committee.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon: The participation of the national team at the Olympics and Paralympics is a matter for the British Olympic Association and British Paralympic Association, which are required to operate independently of the Government under International Olympic Committee regulations.The Prime Minister has been clear that he is not in favour of sporting boycotts. As the Government has previously made clear, no decisions have yet been made about Government attendance at the Beijing Olympics in 2022.We regularly engage across government departments and with partners on a range of issues related to China and human rights.

Ministry of Defence

Joint Strike Fighter Aircraft: Accidents

Lord Tunnicliffe: To ask Her Majesty's Government when the investigation into the F35 jet crash in the Mediterranean sea will be completed; and whether the results of the investigation will be published.

Baroness Goldie: An investigation into an aircraft accident can be a complex and necessarily long process involving the gathering and analysing of a vast amount of evidence from many different sources. A Service Inquiry will be convened to investigate the circumstances surrounding the loss of ZM152; it is not possible at this early stage to determine how the investigation will proceed.

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

Farms: Tenants

Baroness McIntosh of Pickering: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of (1) the requirement in farm tenancy agreements made under the (a) Agricultural Holdings Act 1986, or (b) Agricultural Tenancies Act 1995 that the tenant is required to use the land exclusively for agriculture, and (2) the implications of this requirement on tenant farmers seeking to use land for (i) water storage, (ii) carbon sequestration, (iii) tree planting, as part of Environmental Land Management Schemes.

Baroness McIntosh of Pickering: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the risk of landowners evicting tenant farmers that seek to use land for (1) water storage, (2) carbon sequestration, (3) tree planting, as part of Environmental Land Management Schemes; and what steps they are taking to mitigate any such risk.

Baroness McIntosh of Pickering: To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the reply by Lord Benyon on 17 November (HL Deb, col. 282), to what extent tenant farmers may claim for an environmental scheme as part of the Environmental Land Management Schemes without breaching their farm tenancy agreement.

Lord Benyon: The Government is working to ensure that the design of our future farming schemes is broadly accessible to as many land managers as possible including tenant farmers. As part of this we are considering questions around landlord consent and length of scheme agreement and we are exploring and testing how our new schemes might work in practice across different types of holdings and different types and lengths of tenancy agreements. For our new environmental land management schemes to be successful, we need them to work for a wide range of farmers, foresters and other land managers including tenant farmers. As part of the development of the Sustainable Farming Incentive scheme, we have considered the needs of tenants and have worked closely with a number of organisations including the Tenant Farmers Association, Country Land and Business Association and National Farmers’ Union. We’re also working with tenants through our pilot, test and trials and user research For the Sustainable Farming Incentive Pilot, participants must have management control of the land included within the agreement for the duration of the pilot agreement. This is so that participants can fulfil the actions on the land whilst under agreement but has allowed tenants with land covered by short term tenancies to apply for the scheme pilot. We are embedding the pilot learning and will continually review this eligibility to inform our development of all the future schemes including the early roll out of the Sustainable Farming Incentive in 2022. Whilst land under Agricultural Holdings Act Tenancy Agreements and Farm Business Tenancy Agreements is substantially for agricultural use, landlords and tenants can work together positively to agree to diversifications including using the land for environmental improvements which can often be delivered alongside agricultural production. To encourage this the Tenancy Reform Industry Group recently produced a Code of Good Practice CODE OF GOOD PRACTICE (rics.org) providing guidance to help tenants, landlords and their advisers take a positive and practical approach to agreeing variations to agricultural tenancy agreements that will help the sector adapt and make the most of new opportunities as we move through the agricultural transition period. The Government encourages all tenants and landlords to work together and follow the Code of Practice on agreeing diversifications as we transition to new agricultural polices based on public money for public goods.

Agriculture: Land

The Lord Bishop of St Albans: To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have, if any, (1) to investigate the purchase of agricultural farmland by multinational companies for the purpose of planting trees to offset carbon emissions, and (2) to prevent agricultural farm land being purchased for such purposes.

Lord Benyon: Voluntary carbon markets can be used by companies to finance nature-based solutions to climate change, and they can provide another potential income stream for landowners and farmers in appropriate areas. However, they should only ever be used in addition to action that companies are taking to reduce their own emissions in line with independently verified science-based targets. Guidance for companies on the responsible use of voluntary carbon markets is set out in Environmental Reporting Guidelines.The UK Woodland Carbon Code and UK Peatland Code provide robust arrangements for the registration and monitoring of woodland creation and peatland restoration projects in the UK. These codes are supported by the publicly accessible UK Land Carbon Registry, which contains details of projects registered under these codes and the issuance of carbon units arising from these projects.Her Majesty's Land Registry publishes information on all companies (UK and overseas) which own property in England and Wales ( https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/land-registry). Agricultural and planning policies are devolved matters.It is important that tree planting and nature-based solutions more generally are undertaken in places that account for the multiple benefits we get from land. Planning policy is an important tool in helping to manage land use, as are environmental regulations and consultations to ensure that woodland creation, in particular, is undertaken in appropriate places. New tools, like Local Nature Recovery Strategies introduced in the Environment Act 2021, will help identify and map new opportunities for nature recovery and nature-based solutions.We are also exploring how we can support more land sharing, for example by encouraging tree planting alongside or as part of food production through agroforestry. In the Net Zero Strategy published in October 2021, we committed to encourage and support increased agroforestry.

Home Office

Asylum: Females

The Lord Bishop of Durham: To ask Her Majesty's Government when they will publish the evaluation of the 'Action Access' alternative detention pilot.

Baroness Williams of Trafford: The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) have appointed the National Centre for Social Research (NatCen) to independently evaluate this pilot.NatCen will be publishing the evaluation on their website the aim is for the evaluation to be published by the end of the year.

Treasury

Clothing: Exports

The Earl of Clancarty: To ask Her Majesty's Government what advice they are giving regarding carnets to those working in the fashion industry and who travel to Europe for work purposes, particularly in regard to clothing items; and what plans they have to make such advice more detailed.

Lord Agnew of Oulton: Now that the UK has left the EU Customs Union and Single Market, there are new customs processes that businesses and individuals need to follow when moving goods from Great Britain into the EU and vice versa. These new processes apply to all goods being moved on a temporary basis. HMRC are supporting traders to adjust to changes in their customs obligations with extensive engagement, communications campaigns, guidance, and educational resources, working in collaboration with other Government departments. ATA Carnets are one option businesses and individuals can use to move goods temporarily between the UK and EU. An ATA Carnet simplifies customs formalities by allowing a single document to be used for clearing goods through customs in the countries that are part of the ATA Carnet system. This removes the requirement for individual declarations of goods and allows goods to be imported or exported without payment of duty. Examples of goods that can be covered by ATA Carnets include commercial samples, clothing, and jewellery as well as professional equipment such as photography equipment, stage equipment and lighting. In the UK, ATA Carnets are administered by the London Chamber of Commerce and Industry. There is an issuing cost, and Carnet holders are required to provide a security which relates to the value of the goods being temporarily exported. More information can be found on their website. As an alternative to an ATA Carnet, businesses and individuals may be able to use the EU’s Temporary Admission procedure, when moving goods temporarily into the EU. This allows goods to enter the EU on a temporary basis without payment of duties subject to relevant conditions being met. The management of EU import and export procedures is the responsibility of the customs authorities of the Member States, so it is important that businesses and individuals confirm any conditions or procedures that may apply, such as the time limit that goods may remain in the EU without the payment of duty. Further information can be found on the EU’s website.

Clothing: Exports

The Earl of Clancarty: To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to help (1) reduce, or (2) remove, the costs of carnets for those working in the fashion industry who travel to Europe for work purposes.

Lord Agnew of Oulton: In the UK, ATA Carnets are administered by the London Chamber of Commerce and Industry. More information can be found on their website. As an alternative to an ATA carnet, businesses and individuals may be able to use the EU’s Temporary Admission procedure, when moving goods temporarily into the EU. The EU’s Temporary Admission procedure allows goods to enter the EU on a temporary basis without payment of duties subject to relevant conditions being met. Temporary Admission rules allow a customs declaration to be made orally or by conduct, by speaking to a customs official or driving through the green channel at port, in certain circumstances. This may be a cost-effective option for eligible businesses and individuals. The management of EU import and export procedures is the responsibility of the customs authorities of the Member States, so it is important that businesses and individuals confirm any conditions or procedures that may apply, such as the time limit that goods may remain in the EU without the payment of duty. Further information can be found on the EU’s website.

Clothing: Exports

The Earl of Clancarty: To ask Her Majesty's Government what is their definition of a Duplicate List withregard to the transportation of samples in the fashion industry.

Lord Agnew of Oulton: A Duplicate List is an alternative to using a full customs declaration when exporting goods temporarily or when claiming Returned Goods Relief (RGR). It involves the exporter preparing two copies of a list of all the goods being temporarily exported and presenting them to Customs, along with other customs paperwork. An extensive range of items can benefit from the Duplicate List procedure, including trade samples, although the Duplicate List can only be used for items in baggage accompanied by the traveller. A copy of the list endorsed by Customs at export can be used as evidence of export to claim RGR when items are subsequently re-imported. Detail on the process and requirements for the Duplicate List can be found on Gov.uk. RGR is a long-standing relief that allows eligible items to be reimported free from Customs duty and import VAT, if certain conditions are met. For example, they must not have been processed or repaired other than routine maintenance whilst outside the UK.

Coronavirus: Government Assistance

Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the prospect of recovering money claimed fraudulently from the (1) Coronavirus Job Retention scheme, (2) Self Employment Income Support scheme, and (3) Eat Out to Help Out scheme.

Lord Agnew of Oulton: HMRC are taking a proportionate approach to recovering overclaimed grants, rather than actively seeking out claimants who have made small mistakes. In the year 2020-21, HMRC recovered around £500 million. This is in addition to losses of circa £200 million being prevented by not paying out on suspicious claims. In addition, claimants made repayments of around £350 million in 2020-21 to correct claims they had got wrong. The Government has invested over £100 million in a Taxpayer Protection Taskforce made up of 1,265 HMRC staff to combat fraud in the schemes. The taskforce is forecast to recover a further £1 billion from the schemes in the two years until 31 March 2023.